The present invention relates generally to phased array antennas, and more particularly, to planar, low profile phased array antennas employing stacked disc radiators.
The assignee of the present invention has investigated the development of super high frequency phased array antennas for use in various radar and communication applications. Typical applications for such super high frequency phased array antennas include submarine communication systems, ground-based communication systems, radar systems, and satellite communication systems, and the like.
To this end, the assignee of the present invention has developed several phased array antennas using disc radiator apertures. U.S. Pat. No. 5,745,079, issued Apr. 28, 1998, entitled "Wide-Scan/Dual-Band stacked disc radiators on stacked dielectric posts phased array antenna", provides for an antenna that exhibits performance over an octave-bandwidth. U.S. patent application Ser. No. 08/878,171, filed Jun. 18, 1997 entitled "Planar, Low Profile, Wide-Band, Wide Scan Phased Array Antenna Using a Stacked-Disc Radiator", now U.S. Pat. No. 5,880,694, provides for an antenna that exhibits excellent performance while maintaining a planar, low profile.
Papers have also been published that address prior developments leading up to the present invention. A publication in the 1996 IEEE AP-S International Symposium, Baltimore, Md., pp. 1150-1153, entitled "Low-Profile, Broadband, Wide-Scan, Circular-Polarized Phased Array Radiator", discusses the subject matter contained in U.S. Pat. No. 5,745,079. Another publication in the 1997 IEEE AP-S International Symposium, Montreal, Canada, pp. 702-704, entitled "Planar, Low Profile, Wideband, Wide-Scan Phased Array Antenna Using Stacked-Disc Radiator", discusses the subject matter contained in U.S. Pat. No. 5,880,694. The present invention is an improvement to the invention disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,880,694. It would therefore be advantageous to have an improved antenna element that permits the construction of planar, low profile, wide-band, wide scan phased array antennas.
Accordingly, it is an objective of the present invention to provide for an improved antenna element that may be used to construct planar, low profile phased array antennas. It is a further objective of the present invention to provide for an improved antenna employing compact stacked disc radiator elements.